microfluidics
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Harvard stores 704TB in a gram of DNA, may have us shopping for organically-grown storage (video)
Early research has had DNA making circuits and little factories. We haven't really seen DNA used as a storage medium, however, and it's evident we've been missing out. A Harvard team led by George Church, Sriram Kosuri and Yuan Gao can stuff 96 bits into a DNA strand by treating each base (A, C, G, T) as though it's a binary value. The genetic sequence is then synthesized by a microfluidic chip that matches up that sequence with its position in a relevant data set, even when all the DNA strands are out of order. The technique doesn't sound like much on its own, but the microscopic size amounts to a gigantic amount of information at a scale we can see: about 704TB of data fits into a cubic millimeter, or more than you'd get out of a few hundred hard drives. Caveats? The processing time is currently too slow for time-sensitive content, and cells with living DNA would destroy the strands too quickly to make them viable for anything more than just transfers. All the same, such density and a lifespan of eons could have us turning to DNA storage not just for personal backups, but for backing up humanity's collective knowledge. We're less ambitious -- we'd most like to know if we'll be buying organic hard drives alongside the fair trade coffee and locally-sourced fruit.
Sharp Labs Europe develops portable microfluidic chip that completes blood tests in minutes
In partnership with the University of Southampton, Sharp Labs Europe is developing a mobile lab-on-a-chip that spits out results in minutes, potentially putting the test result waiting game to an end. Using microelectronics found in LCDs, the programmable microfluidic square splits microliters of blood -- and potentially other fluids -- into smaller droplets which it subjects to controlled chemical reactions. A single blood sample can be used for multiple tests, so there's no need to endure a barrage of pricks. Folks anxious for snappier lab results may need to sit tight, however, as it could be five to ten years before the device settles into your doctor's office. In the meantime, head past the break to get the scientific lowdown from Sharp Research Supervisor Ben Hadwen.
Scientists separate plasma from blood with working biochip
Disposable biotech sensors won't let you diagnose your own diseases quite yet, but we've taken the first step -- a research team spanning three universities has successfully prototyped a lab-on-a-chip. Called the Self-powered Integrated Microfluidic Blood Analysis System (or SIMBAS for short, thankfully), the device takes a single drop of blood and separates the cells from the plasma. There's no electricity, mechanics or chemical reactions needed here, just the work of gravity to pull the fluid through the tiny trenches and grooves, and it can take as little as ten minutes to produce a useful result. It's just the first of a projected series of devices to make malady detection fast, affordable and portable. Diagram after the break!
